but going over the fiscal cliff is serious business, and i'm here seriously trying to resolve it and i would hope the white house would get serious as well. >> is this based on your meeting with secretary geithner or your phone call with president obama last night. could you tell us something about that phone call? >> well, we had a very nice conversation last night. it was direct. and straightforward. but this assessment i give you today would be a product of both of those conversations. >> how much would you be open to the idea of discretionary spending cuts as part of a down payment to get to a longer range solution on entitlements and tax reforms? >> there are a lot of options on the table including that one. >> before the election you were asked whether if obama won taxes would have to go up. i are acknowledging that they will. >> the day after the election i came here and made it clear that the republicans would put revenue on the table as a way to begin to move the process to get this resolved. >> my question is, what message do you have for people who look at the negotiating